Do you feel faster on a lighter bike (compared to a heavier one)?

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naambezet
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by naambezet

My aero 7.2kg bike feels and is a lot faster than my non-aero winter bike (8.8kg). But that's also due to the tyres and the lack of fenders I think

xena
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by xena

I'm to fat to post
Last edited by xena on Sat Sep 24, 2016 10:16 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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xena
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by xena

I'm about 4 stone overweight. Once I get that fat off I reckon I will fly on my sub 5k bike. When I sit on it , it visually bows beneath me. I'd love to be lighter but the stress of posting on this digital demimonde causes weakness and I stuff my fat face with junk food
it's sad I know but I can't stop myself. I went for a ride today and got dropped by everyone even the old woman who lives up the road and rides a tricycle. So I would say get a tricycle , surely 3 wheels are faster.
Knock at the door ,my giant stuffed crust pizza just arrived, buy one get one free"good times"
Xena a demi god among the digital demimonde that is WW community

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OutOfBreath
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by OutOfBreath

What about being a lighter lower power rider, does bike weight of the bike matter more than to a heavy more powerful rider?

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tymon_tm
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by tymon_tm

I feel faster on a stiffer bike - frameset, bar/stem combo and wheelset all play a significant part.

also - define light - you mean like comparing a 10kg mule to an uber bike or a 6.5 kg to a 7.5 kg, because in the second case IMHO it's just all mind games. give me stiffer wheels and save your hundrets of grams :thumbup:
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neeb
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by neeb

For me, at around 63kg, the threshold is about 1.5 kg. Below that I find differences in bike weight almost undetectable, but above that they are certainly noticeable. And I mostly notice it on sharp accelerations up short hills. If you are a lighter, more aggressive rider weight differences will be significantly more obvious.

I always say to people who are sceptical of 2 kilos making a difference to compare running up and down several flights of stairs with a 2kg rucksack on to doing the same with an empty rucksack. 1kg you probably won't notice, but 2kg you will.

fromtrektocolnago
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by fromtrektocolnago

In my opinion a lot of factors go into making a bike feel faster or slower, stiffness in wheels, geometry, rake frame stiffness, etc. My Colnago felt tons faster after I switched from Mavic wheels to Dura Ace wheels and while I rode the new set-up faster, the feeling of the speed was more pronounced than the actual speed gain.
Colnago C-59 (Dura Ace)
Firefly(Ultegra)
Colnago C-64 disc(ultegra) with Bora 35 wheels

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pdlpsher1
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by pdlpsher1

Do people weigh themselves before every bike ride? Although the bike's weight is static, one's body weight fluctuates greatly. So to be scientific one has to weigh the entire system (bike + body + bottles + food) to answer the OP's question. I highly doubt anyone weighs themselves just before every ride.

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neeb
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by neeb

My body weight fluctuation from day to day is usually within a kilogram unless I'm really dehydrated. People often forget about kit though - clothes, helmet, shoes, all that stuff in the back pockets.. can be 2 or 3 kilos all together!

fromtrektocolnago
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by fromtrektocolnago

pdlpsher1 wrote:Do people weigh themselves before every bike ride? Although the bike's weight is static, one's body weight fluctuates greatly. So to be scientific one has to weigh the entire system (bike + body + bottles + food) to answer the OP's question. I highly doubt anyone weighs themselves just before every ride.


Ever weigh a bottle of water. it's two pounds. i carry two of them during the summer. i don't notice a speed difference with or without the water. 4 pounds of water bottles is more than what one gains from a heavier frame in most cases.
Colnago C-59 (Dura Ace)
Firefly(Ultegra)
Colnago C-64 disc(ultegra) with Bora 35 wheels

victorduraace
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Joined: Thu Jul 14, 2011 10:10 pm

by victorduraace

I feel.faster on heavier bike when riding at speed. On climbs and accelerating, lighter one feels better.

claus
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by claus

pdlpsher1 wrote:I highly doubt anyone weighs themselves just before every ride.


Well, I know at least one person who does (not just before, but also after).

TheDarkInstall
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Joined: Sun Jan 26, 2014 3:44 am

by TheDarkInstall

Rick wrote:My proposed explanation of why light bikes "feel" faster:
Weight only makes a significant difference during the acceleration portions of a ride.
But on a light bike, when you make a short-term determined stomp or two on the pedals, a light bike DOES jump forward a little more noticeably.
Over any significant period of time though, you are still just limited by your power to weight ratio.
So it subjectively feels faster because you can feel it jump forward when you are most concentrated on accelerating. But it is not really faster because your power-to-weigh ratio is negligibly affected by the small weight difference (although lighter still really is slightly faster).

Conversely, if you are riding a heavy bike, and you try to put out more power and you don't feel anything changing, the psychological effect is to think "Why bother?"
...even though the heavier bike might actually be holding your accumulated momentum longer.


Lot of truth in all of this.

TeslaOsiris
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Location: Bentonville, Arkansas USA

by TeslaOsiris

I feel faster on a bike that has proper gearing and not the aggressive gear ratios that are being passed off as 'standard' for amateurs and enthusiasts... No one should have to grind up anything.

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gewichtweenie
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Joined: Fri Sep 25, 2015 3:12 pm

by gewichtweenie

neeb wrote:For me, at around 63kg, the threshold is about 1.5 kg. Below that I find differences in bike weight almost undetectable, but above that they are certainly noticeable. And I mostly notice it on sharp accelerations up short hills. If you are a lighter, more aggressive rider weight differences will be significantly more obvious.

I always say to people who are sceptical of 2 kilos making a difference to compare running up and down several flights of stairs with a 2kg rucksack on to doing the same with an empty rucksack. 1kg you probably won't notice, but 2kg you will.

Stairs are steeper than any pitch on the road

by Weenie


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